Famous for the slogan “Owners care,” WestJet Airlines suddenly finds itself with owners who want to join a union.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees has begun a formal organizing drive, after being approached by a group of flight attendants back in April.

“We’re encouraged by what we’re seeing so far, the cards we’re getting, the signatures we’re getting, the people who are coming forward to volunteer,” said Ricardo Miranda, a CUPE national representative, who is working full-time on the WestJet drive in Calgary.

The union needs to get 50 per cent plus one of the estimated 2,800 flight attendants to sign union cards to win automatic certification, or 35 per cent to hold a formal vote. No deadline has been set.

Miranda acknowledges it is a challenge to get people to join, partly because the flight attendants are always travelling, but also because there is apprehension about being seen as interested in unionization.

“They are willing to sign cards. But I have to meet them at a Tim Hortons on the other side of city where no one at WestJet will see us,” Miranda said.

“It’s a huge leap out of their comfort zone to contemplate a union,” he said. “We’re not going to rush the process.”

Miranda said those pushing for the union include newly hired flight attendants as well as some who have been with WestJet since inception in 1996.

“The way they have described it to us is: ‘We are owners. We are proud of the work we do. But we don’t just want to have a cheque and profits,” he said, adding what they want is a seat at the table.

WestJet has always managed to keep unions at bay, despite several organizing drives including one by CUPE in 2006.

“We are not taking this lightly,” said airline spokesman Robert Palmer, who believes the union drive is coming in part because the airline is the midst of dramatic change, with the launch of a new regional airline Encore as well as fare bundles and premium seating.

The airline is also moving to add flight attendants bases next year in Toronto and Vancouver in addition to Calgary. The airline also won permission from Transport Canada to have one flight attendant for every 50 passengers, instead current one flight attendant to 40 passenger ratio.

When the move is fully implemented, 350 to 380 flight attendants will not be needed, but WestJet has promised no jobs will be eliminated. Instead, it is offering buyouts, leaves and other options such as switching to part-time.

Palmer touted the airline’s employee association known as PACT, Pro-Active Communications Team, whose president sits on the company’s board of directors.

“It shows that we take our employee relations very seriously,” Palmer said, noting the association has been involved in every major WestJet decision. “Neither PACT nor WestJet feels the need for a third party to represent the employees.”

University of Toronto business professor Anil Verma says WestJet has always conveyed the message that employees are part of the family by including them with profit sharing and ownership.

“From day one, they have gone out of their way to create an image that ‘we are a family. We do things together. If we have disagreements, we discuss it within the family,’ ” he said, noting a union is an outside agent, bringing the potential of more confusion and conflict.

“It’s an uphill battle for the union because of the history of this company and what we know about its culture,” Verma said.

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